


Kiss Cam and Consequences

by waitingforwonhui



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Slow Build, dumb boys in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-22
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:02:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25125121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waitingforwonhui/pseuds/waitingforwonhui
Summary: What do you do when the Kiss Cam at a football stadium suddenly points at you and your friend whom you secretly have a crush on?Junhui has to find out first hand when he looks up to see Wonwoo's and his faces on the big screen surrounded by floating emoji hearts and big pink letters urging them to kiss for everyone to see.
Relationships: Jeon Wonwoo/Wen Jun Hui | Jun
Comments: 30
Kudos: 241
Collections: You Made My Summer Fest





	Kiss Cam and Consequences

Junhui has never been much into sports. He might look fit and be in great shape but that's certainly not because he works out. Sure, he did martial arts back in China when he was younger but Junhui can't remember having worked out even once since he came to South Korea to go to university. It's been more than two years now and apart from dancing at some club every other weekend, Junhui hasn't done anything remotely resembling sports.

The only thing he probably cares less about than doing sports is watching it which makes it even more surprising that on this beautiful spring Saturday morning, Junhui is on his way to the Seoul World Cup Stadium to catch a football game with a couple of his friends. He blames it on Soonyoung's persuasiveness or perhaps on the despair in his voice when he literally begged Junhui and Wonwoo to come to the game with him and Jihoon.

"The more, the merrier," he enthusiastically exclaimed just a couple of days earlier but Junhui could tell that he was nervous about something. It was not like him to try and figure out why and he would've probably declined regardless if it hadn't been for Wonwoo who just sighed and gave in with an annoyed eye roll thrown at his best friend.

"Whatever, it's just one game and who knows, it might turn out to be fun," Wonwoo said sounding more exasperated than actually willing to join. "What do you say, Junnie?"

"Huh?" Junhui let out intelligently in a sudden surprise of the conversation being directed at him.

"Come on," Wonwoo chuckled. "I'm not going if you're not going."

Junhui was slightly taken aback by Wonwoo's words, "I don't know..."

"How about we get beer and snacks during the match and Soonyoung pays?" Wonwoo argued and earned a loud but short protest from his best friend who quickly realised that paying for a couple of beers and some tteokbokki was actually in his interest.

Junhui quickly agreed after that unable to turn down free food and booze but also because he knew that Wonwoo wouldn't have insisted if this weren't in some way important to Soonyoung. Even though he couldn't tell why exactly, he realised that Wonwoo probably knew and thought that this was worth spending the better portion of their Saturday at a football stadium watching a game neither of them cared about.

And that's basically how it happened that Junhui is now waiting for his friends at the Seoul World Cup Stadium station to go to watch a football game together on this nice and sunny Saturday when he would literally rather do anything else.

He doesn't have to wait long until he hears Soonyoung's loud voice before he can even see his friends approaching around a corner inside the subway station. Wonwoo walks in front of Jihoon and Soonyoung who seem to be completely immersed in a lively conversation and Junhui ignores the small skip in his heartbeat when Wonwoo's stern look turns into a sweet smile at the sight of him waiting for them.

After the initial greetings, they walk up from the station to the stadium, Jihoon and Soonyoung in the front and Wonwoo and Junhui in the back. They somehow always fall back into walking in that formation.

"So, who's playing?" Junhui asks as they near the ticket sale station.

Wonwoo chuckles, "You really didn't even care to look it up before you came here, huh?"

"I think me coming here is already asking a lot."

"Ah come on," Wonwoo lightly taps Junhui's shoulder. "It will be fun. We'll get some beer and I'll show you my new favourite cat video, deal?"

"Deal," Junhui answers rather excitedly.

"And FC Seoul is playing against-" Wonwoo stops and Junhui watches his forehead wrinkle in confusion.

"You don't know who's playing either," he laughs.

"Whatever," Wonwoo shrugs. "We're here for Soonyoung, he needs our moral support."

"Actually, why does he need our support in watching a football game?" Junhui asks suddenly realising he never really grasped the entire story of why it was so important for them to join their two friends.

Wonwoo snorts and shakes his head a little, "Oh Junnie."

"What?"

"Nothing, I just sometimes forget how unassuming you can be."

"Are you mocking me?"

"Not at all," Wonwoo defends. "I think it's cute."

Junhui doesn't really know what to answer or how to react to being called cute by Wonwoo. It doesn't happen often but it does happen and it always makes him flustered and confused. It's not like Junhui doesn't get enough compliments from other people. He's well aware of the constant flock of girls following him around uni and swooning at everything he does but it's different when it's Wonwoo. It's different because Wonwoo usually doesn't just hand out compliments. It's a rare occurrence and that's why it makes him flustered. At least that's what Junhui tells himself.

They buy the tickets and, after a tour around the FC Seoul fan shop and a quick stop at the beer stand, they make their way to their seats. Junhui finds out that Jihoon is a big FC Seoul fan but his friends, whom he used to go to the games with all the time, are both doing an exchange semester right now and he didn't really feel like going to the games alone which is why he is so happy to have met Soonyoung and his friends who "also enjoy football."

As far as Junhui knows, Soonyoung never mentioned liking football in the almost two years he's known him. Junhui himself doesn't care about it for sure and he is certain that Wonwoo couldn't care less either. He decides not to expose his friends, however, assuming Soonyoung is just trying to be nice and make Jihoon feel better about his friends being gone for the semester. _That's probably it and that's very nice of him_ , Junhui concludes.

The game starts and Junhui watches Soonyoung excitedly point out rules and players' names sounding like someone who learned all he knows about football from a Wikipedia article - and probably just the day before the match. Junhui can only shake his head before he catches Wonwoo smiling warmly at his friend on the other side.

"He's such an idiot," Wonwoo says before he takes out his phone and leans over to Junhui to show him his latest cat videos discoveries.

It's one thing they have in common: neither of them could ever get tired of cat videos and it's a weird but comforting bond to have with someone. They also enjoy to play the _Call of Duty_ mobile game or just share music they like with each other and before they know it, they get immersed in the little screen in Wonwoo's hands and manage to block out the entire first half of the game.

Junhui has his temple resting on Wonwoo's shoulder as he watches him play a multiplayer round on _Call of Duty_ when it happens. Neither of them realises what is going on until Soonyoung jumps up on his feet and throws his hands behind his head right next to Wonwoo, "Oh my god! You have to kiss now!"

While Wonwoo furrows his eyebrows looking up at Soonyoung in confusion, Junhui turns his head towards the big screen on the opposite side of the stadium just to find himself and Wonwoo on it surrounded by a bunch of pulsating heart emojis and the words _Kiss Cam_ in big, bold pink letters above their heads.

Junhui is ready to turn incredibly red in his face, throw the cameras an embarrassed smile and walk out of the stadium with a good enough excuse that will allow him never to set a foot in there again. He expects Wonwoo to do the same - maybe minus the blush because Wonwoo doesn't get embarrassed quite as easily - but instead, when he turns to look at the man on his left, Junhui finds him sheepishly smiling. His heart only has time to skip one beat before Wonwoo puts a hand on the left side of his face and leans in to kiss him.

Surely a peck would have sufficed for the cameras, Junhui thinks as he lets his lips brush against Wonwoo's again and again and again. He doesn't really know how long they kiss but it's long enough for him to forget why they're kissing. His head gets a little fuzzy and it's definitely not from the half-drunken beer that he's still holding in the one hand that is not clutching onto Wonwoo's shirt.

Junhui catches himself thinking that he doesn't really want it to end when he feels that they are slowing down about to break the kiss. One last brush of Wonwoo's lips against his then a small peck, then another one and he opens his eyes just to find Wonwoo's dark pair staring directly into his soul. It doesn't feel uncomfortable even though their faces are still extremely close and they're practically breathing each other's air.

As they slowly become aware of their surroundings again, Junhui thinks that this was by far the best first kiss he's ever had with anyone and then feels a sudden drop in his gut region at the realisation that this might just have been the only kiss he's ever going to have with Wonwoo.

While Soonyoung screams and jumps around excitedly, Jihoon claps and Wonwoo buries his head in his hands, something inside of Junhui starts to ache.

* * *

  
  


It's the middle of the day when Junhui gets woken up by the obnoxious ringing of his doorbell. He doesn't know what time it is but judging by the fact that the sun is shining directly into his bedroom, he can tell it's way past noon. The sun doesn't rise at this side of his apartment. _That is not how daylight feels in the morning_ , Junhui thinks as he forces himself out of bed and towards the front door.

"Did you only just wake up?" Minghao's judgemental voice resounds before Junhui can even properly see the boy who lets himself into the apartment and walks right past Junhui towards his kitchen.

"Yes, please... come in," Junhui sarcastically says to the empty hallway before he closes the door and follows Minghao to the kitchen.

"You seem hungover," the younger man throws at him as soon as Junhui steps through the doorway.

He rubs his eyes glad that they seem to be slowly adjusting to the brightness of the day, "That would be because I am."

"Come eat," Minghao simply states disregarding what Junhui just said.

"I'm not sure I can."

"Nonsense," he follows. "You can always eat. It's Chinese... or well, a Koreanised version of Chinese food anyway but it will do."

Junhui snorts. The two of them had many an argument with their friends before about Chinese food not being exactly authentic in Korea but they still keep eating it regardless. It might not taste the same as they know it from back home but it still tastes good.

"So, where did you manage to get that drunk?" Minghao inquires once he has unpacked all the boxes and placed them on top of Junhui's kitchen counter.

"I don't really know," Junhui lies.

He does know. He knows very well because he didn't accidentally get drunk. He made it his mission to get completely smashed after the kiss with Wonwoo the day before. It was the only way he could have possibly sat through the second half of that game after having kissed one of his closest friends on camera for the whole stadium to see. It was the only way he could endure Soonyoung's continuous and seemingly never-ending joking remarks about it.

Right after the kiss, Junhui downed the rest of the beer that he was holding and it dawned on him that this was the only way to deal with what had happened at that moment. In retrospect, there might have been other options to go about it but he couldn't see them at the time and he doesn't exactly regret the next four beers he drank after that and the bottle of wine that he downed all alone once he got home in the afternoon.

Junhui doesn't really remember when or how he got to bed the day before but he's pretty sure he was passed out for more than 12 hours until Minghao just abruptly woke him out of his afternoon slumber. He doesn't even know what time it is and he doesn't want to find out because the only clock Junhui has in his apartment is on his phone and he really doesn't want to check it and potentially find unread messages from Soonyoung there - or worse, Wonwoo.

He will face them again, eventually. Right now, however, he's not ready for it. Not with Minghao in his apartment and certainly not with the throbbing pain in his temples.

"You don't know?" Minghao raises an eyebrow at him. "You're not gonna tell me you got so drunk you don't remember what happened the day before."

Junhui sits down on a barstool next to Minghao in front of his counter, "No, I do remember, I just-"

"Because that would be an acceptable explanation for not telling me, I guess," Minghao cuts him off.

He's not sure if it's the hangover or the obvious accusation in Minghao's tone of voice but Junhui feels confused, "Not telling you what?"

Minghao scoffs, "It's been more than 24 hours and you didn't tell me that you made out with Wonwoo. I thought I was your best friend."

"What?" Junhui asks dumbfounded, "Who- How do you kn- We didn't make out!"

"Right," Minghao scoffs again and it starts to make Junhui feel irritated. "And now you lie straight to my face."

"I'm not lying," the older thinks he can feel a migraine slowly creeping up on him. "We didn't make out, I mean... we kissed, yeah, but it's not what you think- wait, _how_ do you even know?"

"Everyone knows," Minghao shrugs. "And it was definitely more than just a kiss, Jun. A peck takes a second max, you two went on for... what? A whole minute? Two?"

"What the fuck?" Junhui's confusion grows by the minute. "That's not true... and what do you mean _everyone knows_?"

"Dude," Minghao looks at him incredulously. "You do know that football games get broadcasted, right?"

"Oh god."

"Yeah, so I guess someone who knows the two of you watched the game and recognised you and screen-recorded it - long story short, the whole uni knows you're dating now. I just can't believe this is how I had to find out."

"We're not dating," Junhui hears himself almost scream. "It was that stupid kiss cam..."

"So, you're telling me you and Wonwoo were just innocently sitting there like two bros chilling, minding their own business and the stadium's kiss cam just randomly decided to focus on you and your not-so-secret crush and make him kiss you in front of hundreds of people at the stadium and who knows how many viewers at home?"

Junhui can tell that Minghao doesn't believe him by the way he has his eyebrows furrowed at him but that's exactly how it happened.

"Yes," he says vehemently. "And I don't have a crush on Wonwoo."

"Yeah, right."

"I don't."

"Sure."

"Minghao!"

"Jun!"

"Stop it," Junhui demands growing more irritated with every word out of his friend's mouth.

"Stop what?" Minghao retorts with an exhausted eye-roll. "You've had a crush on him before I even met you. I get that you don't want to admit it to yourself but that doesn't make it any less true - or obvious for that matter."

"How is it obvious?"

"Oh my god," Minghao sounds about as exasperated as Junhui feels. "I'm not having this conversation yet again. Let's stick to the recent events, will you? So, you're not dating?"

"No," Junhui concludes not quite willing to just brush over the fact that Minghao called his crush on Wonwoo obvious. He thought he hid it well. He even managed to convince himself that the way he saw Wonwoo or felt about him didn't mean anything. Of course, the way he suddenly felt right after the kiss was a dead giveaway that he was wrong but Junhui was sure he would get over it. He will. Eventually.

"What happened after the kiss then?" Minghao inquires with curiosity.

"I got drunk," Junhui deadpans.

"What?" Minghao drops his chopsticks into the box of food he was nibbling on since they started the conversation. "You idiot."

"Hey," the other man exclaims offended.

"Why would you do that?"

"I panicked?"

"He makes out with you and your natural response is to get completely shitfaced right after?"

"For the love of God, we didn't make out," Junhui shoots back.

"I literally have it on video, Jun. You made out and both of you were pretty much into it," Minghao retorts before he picks up his chopsticks and resumes eating.

"How would you know that?"

"Because I'm not ridiculously oblivious like you," Minghao shakes his head. "The moment the guy realised what was going on, he literally dived right into your face and started to fucking eat it... well, at least that's what it looked like and I don't know about you but if I was kissing someone I'm not really attracted to, I wouldn't go back in right after and follow up with two more kisses."

"How often have you watched it?" Junhui frowns at his friend.

"Shut up," Minghao waves him off with a hand gesture. "Bottom line is Wonwoo liked it and he probably likes you and you're an idiot for not seeing it. He would have to be a pretty good actor to fake all that."

"You know," Junhui ponders. "He actually is a really good actor..."

"Gosh," the younger man sighs. "You're hopeless."

* * *

  
  
  


Unlike most people, Junhui usually looks forward to Monday mornings, not because he cares for waking up early or dragging his tired body to the university before 8 AM but because it's the only day that both, he and Wonwoo, have early morning classes. The first Monday of the semester, without planning it, they randomly met at this one coffee shop they both enjoy at around 7.30 AM and walked together to uni afterwards. Ever since, it has become a sort of tradition for the two of them to get coffee together at that same coffee shop and then walk to their respective classes.

They never really talked about it or arranged to meet, they just both appeared at the same coffee shop every Monday morning at the same time expecting to see the other. One Monday Junhui's early morning class had actually been cancelled, yet for some reason - that he is now more aware of than ever - he still went to the coffee shop at 7.30 AM and met Wonwoo, walked to uni with him and then just waited for his next class. That was one of the times Junhui remembers Wonwoo calling him cute for doing that but Junhui just didn't want to miss out on their little ritual. He didn't think much about it at the time.

Today, however, might be the first time that Junhui actually feels nervous as he walks towards the coffee shop. He hasn't talked to Wonwoo much after the kiss. Junhui got a message from him on Sunday asking if he got home safely to which he replied that he did but they didn't converse much apart from that.

Junhui decides that he would just act as if nothing happened because technically, it was not that big a deal regardless of what Minghao thought was going on or not. Yes, he might be a little more aware of his feelings for Wonwoo now but that doesn't have to change anything between them. After all, it was just a kiss initiated by the exposure that comes from having your heads appear on a huge screen in a football stadium. For all he knows, Wonwoo just reacted on instinct and did what the screen asked them to do. A kiss between friends, it doesn't have to mean anything. At least that's what Junhui spent the whole Sunday evening telling himself, he's still not quite sure how to deal with all of it but now he's at the coffee shop and he can already see Wonwoo standing in line inside, so there's no time to think about it anymore.

"Did you see," Wonwoo starts once they have their coffee in hand and start walking towards their university side by side. "We're the talk of the campus, apparently."

"Yeah," Junhui lets out a little surprised that Wonwoo would talk about it so casually. "Minghao showed me the video that has been going around."

"Oh? He did?"

"Yeah," Junhui nods. "He thought we were dating and I didn't tell him."

Wonwoo chuckles and takes a sip from his iced coffee, "How do you feel about people thinking we're dating now?"

Junhui's eyes widen automatically. It's not that this was news for him but the way Wonwoo said it so relaxed and matter-of-factly makes him feel a certain kind of way on the inside; somewhat nervous but also more than that. He doesn't know how to talk about it, so he just opts for staying as pragmatic as possible.

"Well, the people who matter obviously know we're not dating and the rest... I don't really care what they think. What about you?"

Wonwoo just shrugs, "I don't mind."

He smiles while looking at the path in front of them, "Besides, I can use it as an excuse not to go out with people when they ask me."

Junhui is surprised again. He doesn't know what he was expecting but certainly not that Wonwoo would intentionally feed the fake news of them dating. It doesn't seem to bother him at all to have people think that they are a couple and Junhui doesn't know how to process this information. He tries not to think of what Minghao said the day before. He can't afford to delude himself into thinking that Wonwoo might secretly actually like him. It's not what it is. Period.

"Do you get asked out a lot?" Junhui hears himself ask.

"I wouldn't say a lot but probably more than the average person," Wonwoo turns to look at him. "But probably still less than you."

Junhui can't help but laugh, "I don't really get asked out on dates."

"I don't believe that," Wonwoo deadpans. "You literally have people following you around wherever you go. You probably get asked all the time."

"Nope," Junhui shakes his head. "It maybe happened once or twice since I moved here."

Junhui can feel Wonwoo staring at him from the side.

"It's probably because you never say anything," he concludes.

"What?"

"Yeah, you have that shy-Chinese-boy aura going on. They probably don't even realise that you speak perfect Korean," Wonwoo elaborates.

"What are you talking about?" Junhui giggles.

"It's true. You don't really look easily approachable," the other male takes another sip from his coffee. "You're not as fun and soft on the outside, as you are on the inside."

Junhui looks at him with a smirk, "You think I'm fun and soft?"

"Whatever," Wonwoo scoffs. "So, is the reason you're not dating because you don't get asked out?"

"I guess it's part of it," Junhui answers truthfully and once again wonders about Wonwoo's curiosity this early in the morning. It's true that he doesn't go out on dates at all and partly, he does justify it with the fact that he's rarely been asked out but deep down Junhui knows that there are other reasons for it too. Reasons that are not-so-quietly sipping their iced coffee and walking right beside him. Reasons he doesn't really want to think about right now.

"Would you go on a date if someone asked you out then?" Wonwoo follows.

"Depends who it is," Junhui shrugs. "If I like them, why not? But it's not really happening so there's no point in talking about it. What about you? How come I never hear about any of your dates?"

"Because I'm not interested in the people asking me," Wonwoo shoots him down. "Also, my boyfriend wouldn't like me going out with other people, you know."

Junhui can't help but notice the sinking feeling in his gut region at Wonwoo's words, "Your boyfriend?"

"Yes," Wonwoo smirks then looks at him from the side just before they reach the campus. "You."

"Oh," Junhui lets out a breath he didn’t even realise he was holding in. "I see."

"Sorry, does it bother you?" Wonwoo asks sincerely as they stop in front of the building where Junhui has his class. It's usually where they go their separate ways on Monday mornings. Wonwoo always walks him to his building and then goes to his own class.

"No," Junhui reassures him. "If fake-dating me makes your life easier, you go for it. Besides, I think people will stop talking about it faster if we just go with it."

Wonwoo chuckles, "Alright then, so what are you doing Wednesday afternoon?"

"Huh?" Junhui lets out intelligently.

"I know you don't have classes on Wednesdays and my afternoon lecture is cancelled for this week," Wonwoo elaborates. "Do you want to hang out?"

“Sure, what do you want to do?"

"I'll come up with something."

Junhui tries not to read too much into the smirk on Wonwoo's face. Instead, he shyly nods then turns to look at the building he has to enter in order to break the eye contact with Wonwoo that has started to become a little nerve-wracking.

"Uh, I gotta-", he points behind himself and Wonwoo nods.

"Sure," he says. "Just one more thing."

Junhui doesn't have the time to process or dodge - not that he would want to - before Wonwoo leans in and leaves a peck on his cheek, "We don't want people to question our relationship now, do we?"

"Uh, okay," Junhui lets out embarrassingly trying to avert his alarmingly blushing face from Wonwoo. "See you Wednesday then."

He starts walking backwards towards the front door.

"I'll pick you up," Wonwoo says with a chuckle before Junhui disappears into the building to go to his class.

* * *

  
  
  
  


When the doorbell to his apartment rings, Junhui doesn't expect to see Soonyoung trotting inside behind Minghao whom he was expecting.

"We just had dance practice and I invited him over for food and Netflix on your huge ass TV," Minghao casually explains as if it's his home too and inviting other people to come to Junhui's place isn't weird at all.

"I hope that's okay," Soonyoung throws in with unusually big eyes and even if he wanted to object, Junhui wouldn't have the heart to send him away. Besides, he doesn't really mind having Soonyoung around ever, except that he hasn't seen him since the football game and he just knows that his friend will bring up the kiss that Junhui really doesn't want to talk about anymore.

"If you brought the food, it's fine," Junhui jokes and closes the door behind them.

When he gets to his living room, the two of them have already started spreading out the takeaway they brought with them on Junhui's small lounge table.

"Of course," Soonyoung retorts happily. "We got your noodles extra spicy too."

"Ah, thanks," he had worked up quite the appetite before his friends showed up, so the food immediately manages to distract him from his worries about Soonyoung potentially questioning him about the weekend’s events. "So, what are you guys currently working on?"

Minghao and Soonyoung are in a university dance team together. It was actually Junhui who introduced them at the time because he knew that Soonyoung was looking for people to join his dance group and Minghao had just moved to Korea and didn't have any other friends besides Junhui who wasn't much of a help when it came to studying and improving Minghao's Korean since they always talked to each other in Chinese.

Since Junhui knew that Minghao used to b-boy back in his hometown, he suggested that he talked to Soonyoung who immediately found a liking in the younger Chinese male and had him join the group right away.

Soonyoung was also Junhui's first Korean friend when he came to Seoul about a year before Minghao. He met him in a class they had together at the time when Soonyoung just sat next to Junhui and started talking about anything and everything. Junhui thought it was a little weird how open the other boy was with him right away but he liked him and he enjoyed his company so they spent the rest of the semester sitting next to each other in that particular class until, one day, Soonyoung invited Junhui to join him and his friends for drinks on a summer weekend and that's how he met Wonwoo - Soonyoung's roommate and best friend - and a handful of other people whom he occasionally hangs out with as well.

Despite Junhui being rather shy and Wonwoo being incredibly introverted, they somehow hit it off immediately and started spending time together even without Soonyoung. Besides Minghao, Wonwoo is probably the person Junhui feels closest to right now. Well, at least that's how he felt before the kiss - right now, his growing crush on Wonwoo makes him question a lot of things.

"We're thinking about joining a competition and were just collecting ideas," Minghao explains while opening a pack of salad sauce and emptying it into his box of greens.

"That’s a really cool painting," Soonyoung remarks between mouthfuls of noodles and points at a piece hanging on the wall to the right of the TV.

"Right?" Junhui responds relieved that the conversation doesn't revolve around him and a certain other friend of theirs immediately. "Minghao painted it, actually."

"What?" Soonyoung's eyes widen almost comically. "How are you good at everything?"

Minghao chuckles, "I'm not. I just like to paint and I thought this one fit well in Jun's fancy apartment."

"Now that you point it out," Soonyoung starts. "This is a rather fancy apartment."

He inspects the room and the bit of hallway and kitchen that he can see from where they are seated around the square table in the living room, "How do you afford it?"

"Parents," Junhui and Minghao say in unison.

"They really went all out when looking for an apartment for me to stay while I study here," Junhui elaborates. "I would've been okay living in a dorm, to be honest, but they were strongly against it, so... yeah."

"Now you see why I hang out here all the time," Minghao adds before taking a sip from his iced tea.

"Hey," Junhui retorts. "I thought you come here for me!"

"Yes, of course," Minghao says in a playful tone. "You and your Netflix subscription and this wonderful big screen."

They laugh at that and just when Junhui starts to relax, Soonyoung clears his throat to speak, "So, you and Wonwoo are going on a date tomorrow?"

Junhui almost spits out the mouthful of noodles he was just about to swallow, "What?"

"Are you not?" Soonyoung asks with genuine curiosity in his tone.

"No?" Junhui answers questioningly. "I mean, yeah, we're meeting but it's not a date."

"It's not?" The other male follows up in apparent disbelief.

"Did he say it was a date?" Junhui can hear the panic in his own voice as he speaks.

"I don't know," Soonyoung tilts his head to the side. "It just sounded like it."

"He probably did," Minghao throws in coldly not even looking up from his food. "He probably made it very clear that it's a date but Junhui here is just dumb."

"Hey," Junhui shouts. "I'm not. He didn't say anything about a date, we're just meeting to hang out."

"So, you're not dating now?" Soonyoung asks innocently.

"No," Junhui furrows his eyebrows at the other male. "You're his roommate, you should know if he's dating or not."

Soonyoung shrugs, "I don't know, man, I always thought there was something there between the two of you and then you go ahead and make out right in front of my salad... what was I supposed to think?"

"Well, we're not dating," Junhui concludes. "Well, not really..."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Minghao exclaims looking up from his food for the first time since he sat down to eat.

"Nothing," Junhui defends. "It just seems like everyone thinks we're dating because of that video that is going around and well, we decided we'd just go with it."

"When did you decide that?" Minghao inquires.

"Yesterday when we got our coffee before uni," Junhui clarifies. "And we didn't technically decide it... we just thought it doesn't really matter if people think we're dating."

Minghao shakes his head while Soonyoung eyes Junhui with intent.

"Yesterday was Monday," he says.

"Yeah, and?"

"Wonwoo doesn't have classes on Monday," Soonyoung deadpans.

"He does," Junhui retorts.

"No, he doesn't," Soonyoung argues.

"He does in the morning," he's not quite sure if Soonyoung is just messing with him or not. The Korean likes to joke around a lot but he seems dead serious right now. "We always meet at this coffee place before our morning classes."

"Dude, I live with him and he's always home when I wake up on Mondays," Soonyoung explains.

"Maybe you just wake up late," Junhui shrugs.

"Whatever," Soonyoung turns back to his food with a small shake of his head. "I'll ask him when I get home."

They spend the rest of the evening emptying all of the boxes of food that Minghao and Soonyoung brought with them and watching sitcoms on Netflix until Junhui starts to doze off on the sofa and the other two decide that it's time to call it a night.

Junhui goes to bed with thoughts of Wonwoo and even though he knows he shouldn't, he wonders if anything between them has changed since the kiss. It's probably just Minghao and Soonyoung planting weird ideas in his head but his hopeful heart doesn't rest even when his mind goes to sleep and he dreams of sitting across Wonwoo and holding his hand. He dreams of sweet smiles and nose scrunches and deep, dark brown eyes looking right at him and nobody else.

* * *

  
  
  


"Where are we going?" Junhui asks when Wonwoo comes to pick him up the next day.

"Heaven on Earth," Wonwoo grins.

Junhui burst out in laughter, "A cat cafe?"

"A cat cafe."

"Nice," the other male says excitedly. "I haven't been at one in a while."

"Me neither," Wonwoo tells him. "Actually, not since the last time we went together. I think I only go there with you."

"Oh?"

"I don't know many people who'd want to cuddle little kittens with me," Wonwoo adds. "I don't know that many people I want to meet to begin with."

Junhui laughs, "What about Soonyoung?"

"Oh hell no," Wonwoo shakes his head. "Remember last time we let him come to the zoo with us?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, last week he bought a tiger-print ottoman to go with the seven tiger posters and the tiger-print throw on our couch," he sighs. "What do we need an ottoman for? There's barely any floor space left in our living room at all."

Junhui can't help but laugh. He remembers the day they went to the zoo and lost Soonyoung for two whole hours because he wouldn't answer his phone just for them to later find out that he was "bonding" with the tigers the whole time. Turned out it was a little more than bonding because from that day on Soonyoung developed a slightly concerning love for tigers that goes as far as him identifying as one from time to time. If it was any other person, Junhui would probably be concerned for them but somehow with Soonyoung this doesn't even make it into the top 10 of weirdest things he's done or said so they all just go with it, however annoyed they might get sometimes.

"Not bringing Soonyoung to meet any animals, got it," Junhui answers with a chuckle.

"Yep," Wonwoo nods. "Although, you never know what place is safe with him anyways. The first time he went to Hongdae, he immediately decided to form a dance group afterwards."

"He is an odd fellow," Junhui agrees. "But the dance group is actually not a bad thing to come out of his weird inspirations."

"You're right and it turned out he's good at it."

"Yeah, Minghao really admires him and that's someone who's been dancing his whole life," Junhui elaborates.

"I still have to properly meet him," Wonwoo adds.

"Minghao?"

"Yes, you seem to spend a lot of time with him and I barely even know him."

"You've met before," Junhui says matter-of-factly.

"Only shortly here and there," Wonwoo argues. "And then he mostly sticks to you."

"Do you want to spend more time with him?" Junhui is a little surprised to hear about Wonwoo's interest in meeting Minghao. He would come up in their conversations every now and then, mostly because Junhui had a story that involved him but he never really thought that Wonwoo was looking to get closer to him.

They met a handful of times when all of their friends would get together but Junhui never saw them talk and Wonwoo is right that Minghao usually sticks with Junhui when they are out. Especially in the beginning when his Korean was not as good and he was too embarrassed to talk to their other friends. It's gotten much better lately but now he would hang out more with Soonyoung and the other guys from the dance group when they all get together.

"Not really," Wonwoo shrugs. "It's just that you are super close with him and so is Soonyoung and I'm obviously close with both of you, so it might not hurt to properly get to know him."

"Alright," Junhui chuckles. "He's coming on Saturday, you can talk to him there if you want."

"Saturday?" Wonwoo furrows his eyebrows.

"We're all going out for drinks, did you forget?"

"Oh, right," Wonwoo nods. "Sure, that sounds great."

Junhui doesn't even notice that they have already reached their favourite cat cafe. It's usually how he feels when he's with Wonwoo, like time just passes much more quickly. It's probably because he really enjoys himself around Wonwoo, not only because of his feelings for the other male but also because they have similar interests and topics to talk about. Even their food preferences match so there's never a time that feels forced or uncomfortable when he's with Wonwoo. It's just nice and natural and Junhui has really come to appreciate that.

"What do you want to drink?" Wonwoo asks him when they find a nice corner to sit on the floor and play with the cats at the cafe.

"Do they have lemonade?" Junhui asks. "Or is that weird?"

Wonwoo chuckles, "It's not weird, it's very you and I'm sure they have it."

"Let me give you my credit card," the other male gets up to get his wallet out of his back pocket.

"Don't worry about it," Wonwoo winks. "It's on me this time."

"Oh," Junhui says perplexed. "Okay, thanks."

"That's alright," Wonwoo smiles at him and Junhui fights the now familiar warmth in his gut region that he associates with Wonwoo and that has become a more and more frequent occurrence over the last couple of days.

It takes Junhui less than 5 minutes to bond with a big-eyed tabby and he quickly loses track of space and time playing with the adorable cat and holding it against his own body.

"You look alike," he suddenly hears Wonwoo's deep voice behind himself. He looks at Junhui with a fond smile as he puts their drinks on a table nearby.

"Who?"

"The tabby and you," Wonwoo breathes out a small laugh before he sits down next to Junhui on the floor and starts reaching for the cat toy box.

"Oh," Junhui lets out. "I'll take that as a compliment, look how cute she is."

"Very cute," Wonwoo chuckles.

_Did Wonwoo just call him cute again?_ Junhui can feel his face warm up which is a sure sign that he needs to come up with a distraction, "Let's find one that looks like you and take a selfie with them."

"Ugh no, I hate selfies," Wonwoo groans while he wiggles a mouse toy in front of an orange cat that approaches them.

"I know and what a waste that is," the other male retorts.

Wonwoo just snorts, "Waste of what exactly?"

"That face of yours," Junhui waves his hand in front of the other's visage to strengthen his point. "So much selfie potential."

It makes Wonwoo laugh and Junhui doesn't know why that makes him so proud. He always feels an immense amount of satisfaction when he makes Wonwoo laugh. Partly because Wonwoo just looks much softer and frankly, adorable when he laughs but also because Junhui knows that Wonwoo isn't easily amused and whenever he shows any kind of reaction, it's genuine. He often wondered if there was any special meaning behind the way Wonwoo always reacts to him but then again, Soonyoung makes him laugh more than anyone else and there's definitely nothing romantic between those two, so Junhui would always tell himself that it's probably just the fact that they have so many insiders and similar interests.

"I'll go look for one," Junhui says and gets up from the floor to find a cat that looks like Wonwoo.

"You're so weird sometimes," Wonwoo grins at him from the floor.

Junhui shrugs, "I hear it's very me, you know."

Wonwoo laughs again and starts rubbing the tabby's belly as the cat rolls on the back to let him. Junhui can't help but admire the contrast between Wonwoo's naturally intense appearance and the softness he can give off in situations such as this one. He knows how caring and thoughtful Wonwoo is and he really enjoys the moments when that becomes visible to the outside. Junhui has to shake his head a little to make himself snap out of it before he goes to look for a Wonwoo look-alike cat.

It doesn't take him long to find a Russian blue cat lying in front of a window on the other side of the cafe. The way it looks up at him, it immediately reminds him of Wonwoo and he leans down to let the cat smell his hand and to stroke it a couple of times to make sure it's okay to pick him up and take him to where Wonwoo is still playing with the tabby.

"Look," he says enthusiastically when he sits down in front of Wonwoo again.

"He looks intense," Wonwoo states when Junhui holds the Russian blue in front of his face.

"So do you!"

Wonwoo frowns.

"In a good way," Junhui elaborates. "A little mysterious and intimidating, but just as soft and playful on the inside as this fellow."

If he didn't know better, he would say that Wonwoo looks a little flattered. But it's not like Wonwoo to get affected by compliments so Junhui just pushes it aside and gives the credit to his own weirdness once again.

"Alright then," Wonwoo breathes out a laugh. "So we found our cat-selves, are you gonna take the selfie or should I?"

"I'm appalled you even have to ask," Junhui shakes his head as he sits down next to the other male and holds the Russian blue against his body. Wonwoo lifts the tabby up from the floor and also holds it into the picture while slightly leaning into Junhui who lifts his phone up in his left hand to take a picture from a good angle.

"You suck at taking selfies," Junhui adds just before he takes a couple of shots of them making different facial expressions and holding the cats in various ways to their faces.

"We look like a little family," Wonwoo blurts out when Junhui shows him the pictures a couple of minutes later.

He is dumbfounded at the comment, "Uh, yeah- haha, a little."

"You should write that in the caption if you post it on Instagram," Wonwoo adds.

"Do you want me to post it?"

Wonwoo shrugs, "I think we look good and it would certainly solidify the dating rumours."

Junhui lets out a breathy laugh, "Trust me, those dating rumours are pretty solid, even Soonyoung thought we're dating and he was actually there."

"He's just jealous the kiss cam didn't stop at him and Jihoon," Wonwoo explains playfully. "I told him it can't be helped that we're just so much hotter than him."

“He likes Jihoon?" Junhui inquires once he stops laughing at the other's remark.

"Of course, he likes Jihoon," Wonwoo says in disbelief. "It was the whole point of going to the game. I thought you would've figured it out by now."

"So, that's why he needed our support?"

"Wow, you're really not great at reading people, huh?"

Junhui pouts, "I just don't want to make assumptions and be wrong."

"That's cute," Wonwoo says and gives a squeeze to the other's arm. "But yeah, he's been into Jihoon for a while and he only recently managed to get close to him. Now he just joins in on whatever Jihoon wants to do and forces me to go with them more often than not."

"And you can't say no?" Junhui asks with curiosity.

"I can and I do most of the time but he's such an idiot and I feel like I can't just leave him to his own devices, so I give in every now and then," Wonwoo elaborates. "Especially, when I manage to drag you into it as well then at least I don't have to suffer on my own."

There's a wide, teasing grin on Wonwoo's face but Junhui can't even be mad at him.

"Well, now that I know for a fact that it's about getting Soonyoung to spend time with his crush, I might agree to things more often and drag you into it as well," he teases back.

"Oh no, what have I done?" Wonwoo buries his face in the tabby cat's fur and Junhui breaks out in laughter.

They spend a couple of hours at the cafe playing with the cats and talking about anything and everything. Junhui concludes that being around Wonwoo and especially being alone with him doesn't help at all with his exponentially growing crush on him but he doesn't want to stay away from him either.

No matter what their relationship is, he doesn't want to give up the ease and comfort he feels when he is with Wonwoo. No matter how much he likes him, Junhui decides that he won't let it jeopardise what they have right now. Wonwoo's friendship is just too precious to ruin with potentially unrequited feelings and he's dealt with them for so long already that he won't let the kiss and all the fake dating affect his behaviour any longer.

Junhui thinks that he shouldn't wonder about Wonwoo's intentions as much as he does now. It's just going to make him read into things and be delusional about them and act weird around Wonwoo. He might even potentially get hurt, so what's the point? There is none.

So, instead of letting Wonwoo bring him back home, he says goodbye at the subway station and goes back on his own. He makes sure not to let Wonwoo kiss him on the cheek as a joke again because it might just be fun and games for him, but it made the butterflies in Junhui's stomach act up quite a bit last time. Instead, he gives him a friendly hug as he usually does and steps away with determination.

If Wonwoo realises that Junhui is any different, he doesn't show it. He just steps away as well and says his goodbye before Junhui disappears behind the closing doors of the train and that's how their evening ends.

* * *

  
  
  
  
  


Junhui can already see his friends engaged in a somewhat heated conversation as he approaches the table where they usually have lunch together. It just so happens that on Thursdays most of them have a break around lunchtime or no classes whatsoever, so they got into the habit of meeting at the cafeteria and eating together whenever possible.

Just like his Monday morning coffee with Wonwoo, it's not something they all agreed on, it just naturally started recurring again and again and now he knows when he goes to the cafeteria to have lunch on a Thursday, he's very likely to find at least one of his friends there. It's something that Junhui has come to cherish over the past months.

Today, however, he can see that Jihoon has joined them too and across from him, he can see Soonyoung smiling just a little brighter and talking just a little louder - although, that might just be because Seokmin is sitting right next to Soonyoung and Junhui could swear both of their volumes increase exponentially the more time they spend together.

Wonwoo is sitting across from Seokmin and to the left of Jihoon and there's another chair next to Wonwoo that Junhui knows has been kept free for him. He goes right for it and sits down with a small _Hello_ and a smile. Apart from Wonwoo, nobody really greets him back and he doesn't expect it given that they seem to be caught up in some sort of discussion.

"What are they fighting about this time?" Junhui asks calmly barely audible under the piercing noises of the commotion that he calls his friends.

Wonwoo swallows a bite then grins at him, "Seungkwan bought a tiger-print face mask and Soonyoung thinks he's coming for his brand."

"Let me guess, Seokmin is siding with Soonyoung," Junhui says while poking a straw into his Capri Sun. "And Seungkwan knows they're just messing with him but he's still enraged?"

"As usual," Wonwoo nods with a shaky laugh.

"It's leopard-print," Seungkwan shouts and leans over the table to look at Soonyoung.

Seokmin, who is sitting between the two, turns to him and puts on his familiar comic tone, "But does that make it better or worse? Did you just pick a different, similar-looking, however, faster and more widely acknowledged as a fashionable print wild cat to establish your own brand and compete with Soonyoung's?"

Seungkwan rolls his eyes and presses his teeth together. His breathing becomes louder as he holds onto his iced Americano and seemingly chooses what to say next. He looks like he's ready to jump over the table and choke both of them.

"Wait," Soonyoung suddenly throws in. "You make it sounds like leopards are better than tigers."

Junhui snorts and shakes his head a little, "And we have reached the point where it turns into an actual argument over something incredibly irrelevant."

"Yep," Wonwoo laughs. "How does it never get boring?"

"No, of course not," Seokmin tells Soonyoung. "You know I would never say such an atrocious thing."

He puts an arm around Soonyoung's shoulders while the other male frowns and Seungkwan lets out an exasperated breath.

"You two seem like an old married couple," Jihoon adds between giggles and Junhui can literally see the panic rise in Soonyoung's face as he pushes Seokmin's arm off of his shoulder.

"We're not a couple," he positively screams across the table.

Both Wonwoo and Junhui break out in giggles and look at each other with widened eyes.

"Things have taken an unexpected turn," Wonwoo says holding onto Junhui's arm.

"Who would've thought it could get even more dramatic?" Junhui retorts.

"It's just how they are," Seungkwan tells Jihoon with furrowed eyebrows. "I don't know what's wrong with Seokmin but Soonyoung can't help it, he's a Gemini."

"Hey," Junhui lets out a little louder and Wonwoo breaks out in laughter even more.

"It's okay, sweetie," Seungkwan says in a reassuring tone. "You're not on his level of Gemini, you're an exception."

"I don't know if that's a compliment or an insult," Junhui says in Wonwoo's direction and Wonwoo just shakes his head while trying to calm down from laughter.

Suddenly, Junhui feels a cold hand on the back of his neck and a body leans into his left side standing next to him.

"I thought I'd find you here," Minghao says and greets the rest of the table with a small nod and a smile. "I have a favour to ask."

"What is it?" Junhui looks up at him with scrunched shoulders adjusting to the coolness of Minghao's hand stroking the back of his neck.

"I'm going out with Mingyu and some others tomorrow and we wanted to check out this new club," he starts. "It's near where you live so I wanted to ask if I can crash at your place when I get back."

"Sure," Junhui shrugs. "Just try not to wake me up."

"Thanks," Minghao smiles at him. "Don't worry, I have my keys."

"You have keys to his apartment?" Seungkwan eyes them with raised eyebrows. "Are you guys a thing? I thought Jun was dating Wonwoo."

Before Junhui can answer anything, he feels Wonwoo shuffle next to him. When he looks at him Wonwoo has already packed up all his stuff and is about to get up from his chair.

"Clearly we're not," he says in an unusually serious tone and gets up with a smile that doesn't reach his eyes. "It's just a dumb rumour."

Junhui doesn't really know what made Wonwoo's mood shift so suddenly but he doesn't dare to ask. He knows he doesn't have a right to feel hurt at the other's words but for some reason hearing Wonwoo call it a 'dumb rumour' pulls at his heartstrings. Instead of saying anything, he looks away and pokes at his food trying not to make his sorrow obvious.

"Where are you going?" Soonyoung shouts at his roommate in confusion.

"Library," Wonwoo simply states. "I have some stuff to read before my next class, see you guys."

"See you," Jihoon answers followed by a high-pitched _'bye'_ from Seokmin.

Junhui spends the rest of his lunch break quietly eating his food while his friends engage in a discussion about leopards and tigers and which wild cat is better. He doesn't really follow their conversation and he doesn't stay long enough to hear if they come to a mutual agreement. He assumes they don't and it doesn't really matter because the only person who cares about it is Soonyoung and he's already dead-set on tigers.

Instead, Junhui wonders about Wonwoo's behaviour earlier. He wonders what he did to make him react that way if he did anything at all. It's not like he cared for their fake dating rumour that much but just the days before, Wonwoo seemed rather amused by it and it felt a little off for him to shut it down the way he did just then. Maybe Juhui is just reading way too much into it again and Wonwoo just didn't want his friends to believe a lie. He probably just really had school work to do and Junhui is unnecessarily questioning everything just as he always does.

Nevertheless, it doesn't let him go and he doesn't hear from Wonwoo for two whole days after that until they all meet at their favourite bar on Saturday as they had planned for quite a while.

  
  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  


Junhui only notices how often he usually sits next to Wonwoo and mostly talks to him when all of their friends meet because this time he doesn't. They share two tables between ten of them and Junhui tries hard not to read anything into the fact that throughout the entire evening he doesn't even once end up talking to Wonwoo, let alone sit at the same table as him.

Minghao comforts him without even knowing why Junhui feels down to begin with, and that's something he really cherishes about Minghao. The younger is always there for him even when he doesn't understand him. Although, sometimes he might understand the situation better than Junhui even realises.

It's already way past midnight when Soonyoung approaches him with a suspicious smile on his face, "Jun, my man, my brother from another mother, my-"

"What do you want?" Junhui throws him a side-eye and tries not to show how much he enjoys it when Soonyoung gets like this.

"Alright," Soonyoung quickly sits down next to him and throws an arm around his shoulders. "I need to ask you a huge favour."

Junhui sighs, "What is it?"

"Can you take Wonwoo home?" Soonyoung beats his short lashes at him and Junhui can't help but furrow his eyebrows at him.

Any other night, it wouldn't even be a favour to ask him that because usually, he'd stick to Wonwoo and one of them would bring the other one home anyway. That should be a giveaway that something is off with Wonwoo but Junhui doesn't want to admit to himself that his crush - and more importantly, his friend - has been avoiding him the whole night.

"My home?" Junhui asks perplexed.

"Your home, our apartment, I don't care where," Soonyoung explains. "You can have my keys if you want to go to our place, just please make sure he gets there safely. Pretty please?"

"I don't understand," Junhui says genuinely confused by Soonyoung's request. He would understand if Soonyoung wanted the apartment for himself or something but why can't Wonwoo go home alone?

"Look, I'd do it myself but-" Soonyoung looks around the bar apparently making sure that nobody hears what he's about to say. "But Jihoon has been holding my hand under the table for the past two hours and he just asked me if I wanted to go home with him. Please, Jun, you have no idea how long I've been trying to make something happen between the two of us?"

Junhui would feel happy and warm for Soonyoung if there wasn't one thing he's still not getting, "But why can't he go home alone?"

"Are you serious?" Soonyoung moves away from him a little and looks at him as if Junhui just gave the most appalling statement ever. "Didn't you see how fucking drunk he is?"

"What?" Junhui lets out intelligently.

"I don't know what got into him," Soonyoung elaborates. "But I'd be surprised if he were able to tie his own shoes, let alone get back to our apartment on his own."

"Oh," Junhui says unable to process this information completely.

Wonwoo must have had a lot to drink to get that smashed knowing how much he can usually take. Yet, Junhui didn't even have one drink with him tonight. His suspicions that Wonwoo might be avoiding him just grow stronger by the minute and he doesn't really feel like taking him home right now. He doesn't even feel like talking to him at all not knowing what he did to make Wonwoo avoid him.

However, he can't let Soonyoung down either. For one, he's really happy for him and Jihoon. He knows damn well how it feels to want someone so much and to have them invite you over and kind of make it obvious that they like you too must be the dream. He's happy for Soonyoung for sure and he wants him to go with Jihoon.

The other thing is, as much as he doesn't want to confront Wonwoo about the way he's been behaving that night, he also cares too much to let him go home alone or with one of the other boys. Sure, they'd take good care of him but Junhui would still be worried. He'd still wonder if Wonwoo made it home safe and if he's feeling okay. He'd want to stick around and make sure that Wonwoo falls asleep and doesn't get sick or anything.

"Fine," Junhui hears himself agree. "Give me your keys then, I'll take him to your place."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Soonyoung says while holding both of Junhui's hands in his own just before he forces him into an uncomfortably tight hug. "I owe you a big one, Jun."

"It's fine," Junhui chuckles rather satisfied with himself. "Go get him, tiger."

"Okay," Soonyoung squints at him. "That was cheesy."

"But you loved it."

Soonyoung nods, "Yeah, I kinda did. Thanks again, here you go."

He hands a set of keys to Junhui and gets up to sit next to Jihoon at the other table. Junhui looks at Wonwoo who is smiling rather dumbly at nothing in particular and it makes him let out a strained breath. He can only hope that Wonwoo is too drunk to remember why he's avoiding him.

  
  
  
  
  


About an hour later, most of their friends have gone home and the only people left are Seungkwan and Seokmin, who have befriended the barkeeper and managed to convince him to only play songs they can sing along to, as well as Wonwoo and Junhui.

"Alright," Junhui says with a small tap to Wonwoo's leg when he hears the first notes of _Single Ladies_ blast through the speakers. "I think it's time to get you home."

Wonwoo didn't avoid him or say anything when Junhui came to his table a couple of minutes ago when everyone else at the other one had left but just as Soonyoung said, he is pretty drunk, so Junhui assumes the alcohol made him forget whatever problem he had with him that day.

"Where's Soonyoung?" Wonwoo just simply asks while chuckling at their two friends intensely dancing as if they were auditioning to be Beyonce's background dancers.

"He left about an hour ago," Junhui explains. "With Jihoon."

Wonwoo turns around with widened eyes and an impossibly wide grin on his face, "What? They left together? Is something going on?"

"It looks like it," Junhui says with a chuckle. "But come on, we should get going as well. It's pretty late."

"What about those two?" Wonwoo points at Seungkwan and Seokmin. He slurs his words as he speaks and Junhui only now realises _how_ drunk he really is.

"I think they're gonna close the bar," Junhui sighs. "And I'm not planning on being around for that."

"Are you coming with me?" Wonwoo inquires while Junhui helps him out of the booth he's been seated in for quite a while.

"Yeah, I'll bring you home."

"You're a good friend, Junnie," Wonwoo says in a tone much more serious than necessary and Junhui can't help but laugh at how adorable he sounds when he's drunk.

"Okay, thanks," he says sarcastically before he checks the booths and chairs to see if they had left anything. "Let's go now."

"Junnie," Wonwoo calls just as they leave the bar and the fresh and comfortably cool late-night air hits their faces. "I don't think I can walk straight, can you hold my hand?"

"Of course," Junhui says with a nervous giggle and lets Wonwoo take his hand and intertwine their fingers.

Wonwoo and Soonyoung's apartment is not quite around the corner but it's in walking distance from the bar, so Junhui decides not to call an Uber thinking that a small walk might not be the worst idea to help Wonwoo sober up a little before he goes to sleep.

They walk quietly for about ten minutes before Wonwoo speaks again, "Junnie."

"Yes?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"You just did."

"Stop that," Wonwoo groans in annoyance. "I'm serious."

"Okay, okay," Junhui laughs breathily. "Ask away."

"You and Minghao," Wonwoo starts but pauses seemingly looking for the right words. "Do you ever- I mean, are you... more than friends... sometimes?"

"What?" Junhui exclaims in disbelief. "That's a weird question."

"You know what I mean," Wonwoo's words are still slurred and his walk a little crooked but Junhui can tell that he's being serious.

"Yes, but no," he answers truthfully. "We're not... _that._ "

"Do you like him?" Wonwoo adds looking at Junhui with a stern face.

"Of course, I like him," Junhui breathes out a laugh. "He's one of my best friends."

"No, I mean... do you _like-_ like him?" Wonwoo hiccups.

"No," Junhui answers a little confused. "Why are you asking me all that?"

"You seem so extremely close with each other," Wonwoo says slowly and gets interrupted by another hiccup in between. "I thought we're close but we're not close like that."

"Honestly?" Junhui says in a serious tone. "Being able to speak your own language comfortably with someone makes you just bond much faster and, I don't know... I think because he depended on me quite a bit when he just moved here made the trust between us grow super fast too."

Wonwoo nods and hiccups without saying anything.

"But I've never looked at him as anything more than a friend," Junhui adds as a concluding afterthought to Wonwoo's question.

"Okay," Wonwoo simply says. "Sorry for being weird about it, I think I was a little jealous."

"Of Minghao?" Junhui unintentionally raises his voice and makes sure to lower it again. "Is that why you were avoiding me the whole evening?"

"You noticed?" Wonwoo looks at his feet as they walk and the silence between his hiccups becomes longer every time.

"Of course, I noticed," Junhui snorts. "I spent the whole evening wondering what I did wrong."

"I'm sorry," Wonwoo says sweetly with a small smile barely forming on his face. "I don't know what got into me. I'm not usually like this."

"I know," Junhui follows with small nods. "Which is why I was worried."

They reach Wonwoo's apartment much faster than Junhui expected and even though, Wonwoo seems alright and has managed to walk there almost on his own, Junhui can tell that he's far from stable on his own two feet, so he makes sure to unlock the door and bring Wonwoo to his room before he makes his way home.

He closes the apartment door behind them before they take off their shoes and waddle towards Wonwoo's bedroom where he lets go of Junhui's hand for the first time since they left the bar and collapses on his bed.

"Oh no," Wonwoo says muffled by the pillow under his face. "Everything is spinning."

Junhui chuckles and turns on the bedside lamp, "Do you want me to get you a glass of water?"

"No," Wonwoo turns around and reaches for Junhui's arm before pulling him down to sit on the bed as well. "I want you to sit here with me."

Junhui laughs at Wonwoo's drunken antics and props a pillow up against the headboard to lean on it, "I guess I can stay a couple of minutes."

"Yay," Wonwoo says cutely and turns around so that he lays sideways on the bed, his head resting on a pillow right next to Junhui's thigh as he looks up to him.

Wonwoo stares at him and Junhui miserably fails to avoid his gaze. Instead, he giggles at nothing in particular and watches a wide smile spread the corners of Wonwoo's lips, "You're so pretty, Junnie."

"Uh, thanks," Junhui can feel his cheeks heat up. He's glad that Wonwoo's bedside lamp doesn't give off too much light or he'd be embarrassed at the thought of blushing in front of the other male.

Wonwoo reaches for his hand and plays with his fingers for a bit before he intertwines them with his own again, "I can't believe I got to kiss you."

Wonwoo's words buzz right through Junhui's entire body and he laughs nervously, shakily. He can't believe Wonwoo would bring that up just like that. Especially right now, with both of them in his bed.

"You would've probably kissed anyone in that situation," Junhui tries to deflect unable to deal with the tension that Wonwoo has created between them in the shortest amount of time.

"No," Wonwoo shakes his head vehemently then furrows his eyebrows at the small headache he causes himself. "If the cam had landed on me and Soonyoung, I would've probably punched him in the face but you..."

Wonwoo lifts a finger to point at Junhui's face and he only slightly touches his nose with the tip of his pointer, "With your pretty, big eyes and your cute cheeks and your plush lips..."

Junhui's heart threatens to beat his way out of his chest with every new word messily uttered by Wonwoo's drunken lips.

"You're so beautiful, I think I would've kissed you even if I weren't hopelessly in love with you," Wonwoo finishes and Junhui can feel an imaginary lump form in his throat.

What? _What?!_ He did not just hear what he thinks he heard. Wonwoo said he's in love with him.

"Oops," Wonwoo suddenly lets out and puts the hand that was in front of Junhui's face over his own mouth as a gesture to shut himself up from talking more. "I guess it's out now."

"You're in love with me?" Junhui whispers and gains a nod and widened eyes from Wonwoo in response.

"I kinda thought you knew," Wonwoo says and gulps audibly. "I like you so much, Junnie."

Wonwoo blinks very slowly and Junhui can tell that he's pretty worn out. The much-needed sleep is pulling at his eyelids and it makes Junhui wonder how much of what he says is true and how much is just a situational consequence of his intoxication. He doesn't know if he can believe him as much as he would love to. Junhui can literally see his own heartbeat through his shirt while his breathing becomes embarrassingly loud too. He just hopes Wonwoo doesn't notice but it doesn't look like Wonwoo notices much of anything right now.

He closes his eyes and smiles while he holds their intertwined hands against his chest.

Junhui clears his throat, yet he still doesn't seem to be able to speak much above a whisper, "I had no idea."

Wonwoo nods with his eyes still closed and a wide grin on his face, "Can I tell you something embarrassing?"

"Sure," Junhui breathes.

"I don't actually have classes on Monday morning," Wonwoo chuckles to himself. "The first time we accidentally met at the coffee shop I did have a class but I didn't like it and cancelled the seminar around the third week."

Wonwoo opens his eyes and looks up at Junhui, "I still kept coming to get coffee because I liked the idea of starting my week with seeing you. I was too embarrassed to tell you, though, you probably would've convinced me to stay at home and sleep in instead. I didn't even tell Soonyoung, I just sneak out in the morning and sneak back in after I bring you to your building."

He presses his lips together and scrunched his nose in embarrassment and Junhui can't quite take how adorable he looks laying there just like that. Junhui hates the way he can't say anything to what Wonwoo just told him. Partly, because he's still not sure if he can believe him and partly, because if it's true, it's just way too much to take in and he would have to confess his own feelings to Wonwoo as well. He just doesn't know if he's ready for that conversation.

"I want to kiss you again," Wonwoo whispers, sits up and scooches over to sit closer to Junhui. "Can I?"

Wonwoo's face suddenly gets alarmingly close to Junhui's own and without rationally intending it, he feels himself nod before Wonwoo brings their lips together. It's more intense, even more overwhelming than the first time. Probably because they are all alone in Wonwoo's bedroom rather than in a loud football stadium filled with cheering people.

Their lips brush against each other as if that was their only purpose in life and Junhui can feel Wonwoo's body lean into him. He can feel Wonwoo's hands on his sides and it gives him the confidence to throw his own hands around the other's neck. He sinks deeper and deeper into Wonwoo's bed sheets until he finds himself lying on his back, the other male's body pressing him into the mattress.

Junhui only snaps out of it when he feels Wonwoo's hand sliding under his shirt and he recalls the circumstances of the situation they're in, "Stop, Wonwoo," he says and Wonwoo immediately moves away from him.

"What?" He asks in shock. "Did I do something wrong?"

"You're drunk," Junhui states matter-of-factly. "This is not right."

"Uh, okay," Wonwoo sits back on his bed and rubs his forehead for a moment. "I'm sorry."

"No, don't be," Junhui says while sitting up as well. "I just don't want you to do anything you'll regret later."

"Oh, trust me, I wouldn't regret this," the other male says with a small laugh.

"You don't know that," Junhui argues. "I just don't think you're in a state where you can really consent to anything like this. It wouldn't feel right for me."

Wonwoo doesn't say anything for a bit. He just stares at Junhui with a fond smile and it makes the other male feel exposed and nervous.

"I'd probably be much more frustrated if this wasn't a reason why I'm so fucking in love with you," Wonwoo eventually says.

"What?" Junhui finds himself dumbfounded once again.

"You're pretty much the nicest person I know," Wonwoo elaborates. "How are you real, Junnie?"

Junhui stares at him open-mouthed not sure how he’s going to survive his crush complimenting him like that. It’s too much. This whole evening feels entirely too much and he is relieved when Wonwoo starts to giggle again and shuffles around on his bed.

"Junnie," Wonwoo starts and reaches for his hand again. "I’m so tired. Would it be too much to ask you to stay until I fall asleep?"

Junhui can't help but smile fondly, "No, I think I can do that."

He doesn't realise how tired he is himself until he lays down next to Wonwoo who turns around to lean on Junhui's shoulder. He relaxes in the comfort of Wonwoo's breath on his skin and Wonwoo's fingers on his own. He doesn't even notice that he's about to fall asleep until they both fall into a deep slumber.

  
  
  


* * *

  
  


Junhui is woken up by the sound of a door closing. He opens his eyes slowly, only reluctantly until he realises where he is and instantly jumps on his feet.

"Hey, hey, easy there," he hears Wonwoo's voice from the door. "Did I wake you up?"

"What time is it?" Junhui asks sounding more distressed than intended.

"Almost 10 AM," Wonwoo says and Junhui only now notices that the other male's hair is wet and he seems to have put on a fresh change of clothes while Junhui himself is still wearing his outfit from last night.

"I fell asleep," he states needlessly.

Wonwoo chuckles while he puts a towel over the back of the chair in front of his desk, "Yeah, I know."

"I'm sorry," Junhui adds. "I was supposed to get you home and not sleep here."

"It's okay," Wonwoo reassures him. "Thanks for taking me home, though, I guess I got pretty wasted there. Honestly, I have a massive headache."

"Oh, do you need anything?"

"No, it's fine," Wonwoo smiles at him. "You've already done enough for me and it's nothing a strong coffee can't fix."

Junhui presses his lips together into a somewhat crooked smile. He doesn't really know what to say or how to address the events of last night. He didn't have the time to process anything that happened on his own, let alone try and talk it out with Wonwoo right away.

Wonwoo was pretty drunk but he confessed to him and they kissed. Again. A part of Junhui cannot quite believe that it actually happened but another part is hopeful. It's not a rumour or wishful thinking if it came directly out of Wonwoo's mouth, right? He can hope a little, _right?_

"So," Wonwoo breaks the admittedly uncomfortable silence between the two of them. "Do you want some coffee too?"

Coffee sounds good but a shower and clean clothes sound even better, "Uh, thanks, but actually, I think I should go home."

Junhui hates the way he sounds. He just really wants to get out of his uncomfortable jeans and yesterday's smelly shirt but he feels himself being much more awkward than necessary. Perhaps it's whatever is left unspoken that is making the situation more awkward but he really doesn't know where to even begin to piece together the events of last night and even less is he prepared to face whatever of his own emotions play a role in the whole ordeal.

"Alright," Wonwoo says with a smile that doesn't feel quite genuine and Junhui feels like he might have overstayed his welcome here. After all, Wonwoo must be pretty hungover. Perhaps there is a better time to talk about it anyway.

"I... uh, I'll let myself out," Junhui points at the door before he nervously tries to fix his hair a little to look presentable to the outside world.

"Sure," Wonwoo nods with an expressionless face and Junhui can't help but feel that something is quite off about him.

Just as he walks out of the room and towards the front door, Wonwoo calls behind him, "Hey, Jun, about last night..."

For some reason, Junhui feels relieved. He turns around and looks at Wonwoo as innocently as he can, "Yeah?"

The other male looks at him a little probingly before he continues, "I hope I didn't do or say anything inappropriate. I apologise if I did but I probably didn't mean it anyway."

_He doesn't remember._

Junhui struggles to keep the eye contact. Wonwoo doesn't remember and even if, he didn't mean it anyway. Something inside of Junhui breaks a little. He didn't really lose anything. After all, nothing between them changes if Wonwoo doesn't remember. If Wonwoo doesn't like him, things still stay the same. Then why does he feel like crying?

Junhui takes a moment and gulps before he speaks. He doesn't want Wonwoo to know or see the turmoil that he has caused inside of Junhui.

"Don't worry," he eventually says. "You didn't do anything."

A small, distant smile forms on Wonwoo's face, "Okay, I'm glad."

"See you soon," Junhui says after he puts on his shoes and opens the door to leave.

"Bye, Jun," Wonwoo answers with a small wave.

  
  
  


When Junhui gets home, he takes a quick but thorough shower. For whatever reason, he scrubs a bit harder today, uses a little more shampoo and body wash as if trying to wash off memories of something he is not supposed to hold onto.

Afterwards, he puts on his pyjamas and spends the rest of the day in bed. He cries even if he tries to tell himself that there's no reason for it. Nothing changes. Yet, somehow everything seems to have changed. He cries a lot. He can't help it.

It's funny how he could hold onto and suppress the feelings he had for Wonwoo for literally years but suddenly, it feels entirely too much. It feels like his emotions are overflowing and he doesn't really know how he will be able to hold them in.

He doesn't know what happened there. He doesn't know what to believe. He doesn't know how to be friends with Wonwoo from this moment forward. There's a lot of things Junhui doesn't know and apparently, he can't think his way into knowing any of it right now.

No matter how hard he tries to imagine it, it doesn't feel right or possible to just go back to the way things were. Yet, he knows for Wonwoo nothing has changed. Wonwoo, who can't remember anything from last night, doesn't deserve to be pushed away or treated differently because Junhui let his guard down - because Junhui let his feelings get the best of him and imagined something more between them than there is in reality. As much as he wants to blame his friend's drunkenness, he can't. If it were anyone else, he wouldn't be weird about it either. He would tease them maybe and have a good laugh about it but he wouldn't abandon them the way he feels like doing with Wonwoo right now.

It doesn't have to be that way, Junhui tells himself. He can get over it. It's probably just the freshness of it all that makes it hard for him to imagine a future in which Wonwoo and he are just simply friends again. Not again, _still_.

If he could turn back time, he wouldn't hesitate to go back to last Saturday and not go to that stupid football game. He would find an excuse, pretend he's sick or just blatantly reject the idea straight away. He would do anything just to make sure not to be in those seats in that stadium on that Kiss Cam screen. Anything. But he can't.

It is what it is and the next day, he knows he would have to see Wonwoo first thing in the morning because it's Monday and Wonwoo doesn't deserve to be treated differently because of feelings he doesn't even know about. Junhui's feelings that have done nothing but hurt him for way too long. He's going to suck it up and pretend. He has to. For Wonwoo.

  
  


* * *

  
  
  


The next morning, Junhui only reluctantly drags himself to the coffee shop where he used to love to meet up with Wonwoo every Monday morning. It's way too soon for him to see the other again and just have small-talk as if nothing ever happened between them but he's determined to make it work. Or at least find out how difficult it could be. It won't be a long time anyway. They usually only have about half an hour to spend with each other before Junhui's class starts at 8 AM.

When he gets in line to get his coffee, Wonwoo is not there yet. It's a little weird because usually, Wonwoo gets there before him but it's not like it hasn't happened before, so Junhui doesn't think anything of it. He gets his coffee and waits around at the coffee shop for a bit. He recalls how they never officially made an appointment to meet there ever, they just did. It feels weird to wait there for Wonwoo because it kind of takes away from the casualty of it all.

Wonwoo doesn't show up for another 20 minutes and Junhui slowly but surely runs out of time before he absolutely has to make his way to his class if he doesn't want to be late. It's only then that it dawns on him that Wonwoo won't show up and instead of heading to university, Junhui gets in line again and orders another iced Americano before he leaves the coffee shop and heads towards the subway station.

A couple of minutes later, he rings the bell to Wonwoo's and Soonyoung's apartment. They don't answer right away so he rings again and again. He doesn't care if he wakes them both up. He has to see Wonwoo. Now.

It takes two more rings for a grumpy and clearly sleepy Wonwoo to angrily open the door with a groan, "What the hell?"

"Hey," Junhui says and holds the iced Americano in front of the other man's face.

"Jun?" Wonwoo's voice sounds a little hoarse like he's not quite awake yet. "What are you doing here?"

"We need to talk," Junhui says and pushes Wonwoo aside to let himself in. Without another word, he takes off his shoes and heads towards Wonwoo's room. He might be in dire need to talk to Wonwoo but he's not going to have this conversation in their hallway.

"Jun, what's going on?" Wonwoo shuffles into the room behind him and closes the door.

"Why did you lie to me?" Junhui blurts out amazed at himself for how stern his voice sounds.

"Lie to you?" He doesn't know if it's the sleep still pulling at his memory or if Wonwoo really doesn't know what Junhui is talking about but the Korean sounds genuinely confused.

"Yesterday," Junhui explains. "You pretended like you don't remember anything from the night before..."

Wonwoo's eyes widen at Junhui's words and he knows he hit the nail right on the head.

"But you didn't come to the coffee shop this morning," Junhui continues. "First I thought to myself, okay, maybe he's not feeling well but you would've said something in that case. I know that. Then I even went as far as to think you overslept but you never did. Not once since I've known you did you ever oversleep to something and then it hit me: You didn't come because that night you told me that you don't really have classes on Mondays, so it would be weird for you to show up there at 7.30 AM regardless, now that I know about it. And then it hit me, wait, that must mean that he remembers telling me that. Wonwoo remembers telling me that the only reason he would get up that early in the morning on a freaking Monday is that he wanted to spend time with me. He wanted to start his week with me. Because he liked me. Because that's what he said. So, why did you lie to me?"

Wonwoo opens his mouth with a smack but closes it again like someone lost for words. For a very long moment there, they just stare at each other. Wonwoo looking perplexed and Junhui feeling very confident in himself for once.

"You woke up," Wonwoo starts then stops and sighs. "You woke up here yesterday and I offered you coffee, didn't I? I wanted to talk about it over breakfast or something but you looked - well, awkward for lack of a better word... like you were dancing around my feelings, like you just wanted to run away and then you did. What was I supposed to say, Jun? I thought I'd make it easy for you and just pretend I don't know anything... that I didn't mean any of it."

"But you did," Junhui shoots.

"Of course, I did," Wonwoo raises his voice. "Fuck, Jun... I told you I was in love with you and you didn't say anything. I was drunk enough to kiss you and you were nice enough to stop me from going any further when you don't feel the same way about me. I might have been hopeful when I was intoxicated but I got the message loud and clear when we woke up the next morning. I'm just-"

Wonwoo stops for a moment and grimaces as if whatever he wanted to say is too painful to put in words.

"You're what?" Junhui says in a voice more strained now like he wants to say something else but he needs to hear Wonwoo's side first.

"I'm confused as to why you would make out with me like that in the first place," Wonwoo says. "It's actually really cruel, you know, and that's not like you. I don't know, I kinda thought it meant something."

"It did," Junhui says and Wonwoo's head shoots up so fast that Junhui fears he might have pulled a muscle there.

"What?"

"I know I shouldn't have kissed you back when you were that drunk and vulnerable," Junhui elaborates. "That's why I made us stop when it got too heated but-"

He purses his lips and tilts his head a little. It's the first time he's going to say it in front of Wonwoo. Not just in front of him but to his face.

Junhui sighs, "I kissed you back because I wanted to. Because it's the only thing I could think about ever since that stupid Kiss Cam incident. Because I like you too. I've liked you for a while, actually."

Junhui is not sure what he expected but he doesn't know what to do when Wonwoo doesn't say anything but just stares at him with his mouth agape and his eyes wide open.

"Wonu," Junhui continues. "You know I didn't know how to react yesterday - you know how I get easily flustered and weird and all that... I'm probably the weirdest person you know, it was easy for me to believe you when you said you didn't mean any and all of what you said."

"First of all," Wonwoo clears his throat. "Soonyoung is the weirdest person I know and then Seokmin and then probably Jihoon for actually liking Soonyoung, what's up with that? Anyway, you take a well-deserved fourth rank on weirdness in my book. Second, I just want to tell you, you're an idiot, okay?"

"Hey," Junhui exclaims but gets quickly shut down by a rapidly approaching Wonwoo.

"No, you are," Wonwoo nods seriously. "I've been flirting with you for months, I threw myself at you at that football game, I insisted on us pretending to be boyfriends, I asked you out on a cat cafe date when I found out you were open to dating. I literally told you, to your face, that I was in love with you... threw myself at you again and you still questioned my intentions?"

Junhui snorts when Wonwoo reaches for his hands. He takes both of them into his own and intertwines their fingers before he continues, "Yeah, Wen Junhui, you're an idiot. But you're the idiot I'm in love with, you know. You're the idiot I'm going to kiss now and call my boyfriend for real. Is that okay with you?"

Junhui laughs and nods unable to say anything when Wonwoo's face is literally just centimeters away from his.

"You're _my_ idiot. My Junnie," Wonwoo says before he brings their lips together in a kiss so sweet it feels like the very first time to kiss him. It's sweeter knowing it's the first kiss of many. It's sweeter because Wonwoo called him _his_ Junnie.

Perhaps going to a football game that one sunny Saturday wasn’t the worst thing Junhui could’ve done on a weekend. After all, it triggered a series of events that all finally lead to this moment. Also, something tells him that it was just one of many football games he will have to go to with the same three people in the future and somehow Junhui is not mad about that. He’s not mad at all.

**Author's Note:**

> this is my humble contribution to the YMMS ficfest
> 
> if you liked it, let me know!
> 
> thanks for reading!! :)
> 
> [twt](https://twitter.com/wonjunnie)   
>  [cc](https://curiouscat.me/wonjunnie)


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